Scribd
Upload
194 views

Problem Solving

Routine problem solving involves using arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to solve practical problems. It is the type of problem solving children begin to do at age 5-6 and adults use daily. Non-routine problem solving aims to develop mathematical reasoning and foster understanding that math is creative. It challenges students to search for strategies without readily available models or solutions. An example is multiplying 35 by 41 where the digits in the product rearrange the digits in the factors.

Uploaded by

Muhammad Rizam Hj Bakri
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
194 views

Problem Solving

Routine problem solving involves using arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to solve practical problems. It is the type of problem solving children begin to do at age 5-6 and adults use daily. Non-routine problem solving aims to develop mathematical reasoning and foster understanding that math is creative. It challenges students to search for strategies without readily available models or solutions. An example is multiplying 35 by 41 where the digits in the product rearrange the digits in the factors.

Uploaded by

Muhammad Rizam Hj Bakri
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Problem solving

Math problems often require established procedures and knowing what and
when to apply them. To identify procedures, you have to be familiar with the problem
situation and be able to collect the appropriate information, identify a strategy or
strategies and use the strategy appropriately.

Routine problem solving

From the curricular point of view, routine problem solving involves using at
least one of the four arithmetic operations and/or ratio to solve problems that are
practical in nature. Routine problem solving concerns to a large degree the kind of
problem solving that serves a socially useful function that has immediate and future
payoff. Children typically do routine problem solving as early as age 5 or 6. They
combine and separate things such as toys in the course of their normal activities.
Adults are regularly called upon to do simple and complex routine problem solving.
Here is an example.

A sales promotion in a store advertises a jacket regularly priced at $125.98


but now selling for 20% off the regular price. The store also waives the tax.
You have $100 in your pocket (or $100 left in your charge account). Do you
have enough money to buy the jacket?

Non-routine problem solving

Non-routine problem solving serves a different purpose than routine problem


solving. While routine problem solving concerns solving problems that are useful for
daily living (in the present or in the future), non-routine problem solving concerns that
only indirectly. Non-routine problem solving is mostly concerned with developing
students’ mathematical reasoning power and fostering the understanding that
mathematics is a creative Endeavour. From the point of view of students, non-routine
problem solving can be challenging and interesting. From the point of view of
planning classroom instruction, teachers can use non-routine problem solving to
introduce ideas (EXPLORATORY stage of teaching); to deepen and extend
understandings of algorithms, skills, and concepts (MAINTENANCE stage of
teaching); and to motivate and challenge students (EXPLORATORY and
MAINTENANCE stages of teaching). There are other uses as well. Having students
do non-routine problem solving can encourage the move from specific to general
thinking; in other words, encourage the ability to think in more abstract ways. From
the point of view of students growing to adulthood, that ability is becoming more
important in today’s technological, complex, and demanding world.
Non-routine problem solving can be seen as evoking an ‘I tried this and I tried
that, and eureka, I finally figured it out.’ reaction. That involves a search for heuristics
(strategies seeking to discover). There is no convenient model or solution path that is
readily available to apply to solving a problem. That is in sharp contrast to routine
problem solving where there are readily identifiable models (the meanings of the
arithmetic operations and the associated templates) to apply to problem situations.

The following is an example of a problem that concerns non-routine problem solving.

Consider what happens when 35 is multiplied by 41. The result is 1435. Notice that
all four digits of the two multipliers reappear in the product of 1435 (but they are
rearranged). One could call numbers such as 35 and 41 as pairs of stubborn
numbers because their digits reappear in the product when the two numbers are
multiplied together

You might also like